Signatures provided via the Smart-ID authentication application developed by Estonia's SK ID Solutions now have the same legal value as a handwritten signature across the entire EU, upgrading its status to equal to digital signatures provided via Estonian ID card or Mobile-ID.

The application allows for the creation of Smart-ID signatures which are recognised in all EU member states as legally equivalent to a handwritten signature. In Estonia, that means that Smart-ID digital signatures are equal to those already in use using the SIM card-based Mobile-ID or Estonia's electronic ID card, SK ID Solutions announced.

Smart-ID is now certified as a qualified signature creation device (QSCD), which is the highest possible level in the EU and allows for the creation of digital signatures that are legally equal to handwritten ones. All EU member states are obliged to accept said signatures. The assessment of the Smart-ID product and service was conducted by German certificate authority TUViT

"The fact that Smart-ID was certified as a product offers new opportunities for future application that would have otherwise remained unattainable," SK ID Solutions CEO Kalev Pihl said in a press release on Thursday. "It is a guarantee for e-services providers as well as users that Smart-ID is worth of the trust it has already been earning."

Pihl added that SK intends to continue having its Smart-ID application assessed in EU member states where the service is to be made available. This has not previously been possible as the relevant judicial area is still being established.

All Smart-ID users to register beginning Thursday will automatically have the QSCD-level Smart-ID. Returning users wishing to use the application for QES-level digital signatures will have to update their app as well as re-register their account.

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